The Speed of Remembrance
by NaraLikesWords
Summary: He felt like going after her. A huge part of him did. Maybe it was because of the glowing sphere behind her shirt, maybe it was because of the fact that she crashed almost literally into his life. Or maybe it was because of the fear and confusion written on her face. Either way, he couldn't just let her leave. He had to find her, and he had to help her. -Rewritten-
1. Chapter 1

A blue blur sped by, leaving everything behind him to eat his dust. His feet practically floated off the grass as he ran by. He'd ran about five miles already, and yet his legs felt no pain. But his heart was pounding and he was appreciating every second of it. The wind brushing past his face, playing with his quills and cooling him down as he kept running forward. Everything was a blur of blue and green to his emerald eyes, and even though he was passing the world by without even taking a second glance, he knew exactly where he was going.

"_And Sonic the Hedgehog approaches the obstacle loop!" _the blue hedgehog chanted in his head as he ran through the loop, curling up into a ball to speed up. He uncurled from his ball shape and kept running, faster and faster, panting heavily and yet still having enough energy to run five more miles.

Being able to run at such impeccable speed was the best feeling that Sonic could ever experience. A great feeling of peace and relaxation washed over him, and nothing could ruin it. Nothing at all.

Until a massive explosion erupted before him.

He tried skidding into a stop, but the impact of the explosion was so vast that it threw him back against the grass and checkered soil. He brought up little dust that joined the clouds of dust the strange blast had brought up. Sonic got up and walked over to the huge gaping hole, seeing only debri and rocks scattered around. As he skid down to level dirt, he was sure this was the work of his egg-headed enemy.

He didn't see anything down there that could have caused the explosion. Right when he was about to turn around and leave, maybe report it to his fox friend, a pile of rocks began to stir. The hedgehog walked over to the pile of rocks with caution and interest. He kicked one of the rocks. A low, muffled groan was his response.

Startled, he began to shove the rocks aside, trying to help whoever was in need of it. After pushing away a few of the rocks, he could make out dark fur. _"So he caused this," _Sonic thought to himself as he pushed away more rocks until the dark hedgehog, who was curled up into a protect ball, was free.

"Hey, are you okay? What happened?" Sonic asked, the hedgehog before him stirring and outstretching his arm. Sonic took it, helping him up, and only then did he see that the hedgehog was actually a girl.

It surprised him a bit, since he didn't really see many female hedgehogs around Green Hill Zone, except for maybe Amy. He shook away the thought of the obsessive pink hedgehog and examined the girl before him. She was covered in scars she most likely got from the explosion. All of her fur was black, except she had a white snout and her quills had a bit of pink at the tips. Now that he thought about it, she kind of looked like Shadow to Sonic. Her irises were a pink color, and her eyes darted over Sonic confusedly as he inspected her. She had gloves like Sonic's with red cuffs that matched her red shoes. Her shoes were also similar to Sonic's, except they had a black stripe instead. The dirty, not even close to white, shirt that clung onto the girl had a bunch of rips and tears, and that seemed to be all she was wearing.

She appeared to be an ordinary hedgehog, until he saw the dull glowing sphere behind her shirt a few inches below her neck. Curiosity nudged Sonic forward as he reached for the neck of the girl's shirt, hoping to get a glance at the glowing sphere. Before he could pull the neck down, though, a sharp sting on his check sent him a few steps back.

Sonic held his cheek and stared at the girl with wide eyes. She stared back at him, eyes wide and an outstretched hand protecting her chest.

He realized how scared she must have felt.

"I'm sorry," he began, inching forward. "I just-" He cut himself off, noticing how frightened she looked, how she was inching away from him, how her breathing was shaky and short. "Wait, I-"

The words barely escaped his lips when she was running away from him, out of the hole and speeding away.

"Wait!" Sonic shouted as he sped forward. He was sure he'd catch up to her in no time; he _was_ the fastest guy around. To his surprise, though, the girl seemed to share his speed as well. She peered back and gasped when she took one look at him, the looked ahead and sped up even more. Glaring and somehow accepting the task as a challenge, he increased speed only to have her speed up even more. He clenched his teeth, anger boiling up enough to blind him and send him tripping over a rock and crashing into the ground.

Sonic clenched his fists and picked himself off the ground, cussing lowly at the stinging on his face from the fall he took. He looked ahead and saw that the girl was long gone and out of sight.

He felt like going after her. A huge part of him did. Maybe it was because of the glowing sphere behind her shirt, maybe it was because of the fact that she crashed (almost literally) into his life. Or maybe it was because of the fear and confusion written on her face. Either way, he couldn't just let her leave. He had to find her, and he had to help her.

"What was that?" someone laughed from above him. He turned around and looked up to see Tails laughing lightly, his orange tails whirring behind him as he flew down and landed before him.

"Did you see her?" Sonic asked. Tails raised an eyebrow.

"The hedgehog you were chasing?"

"Yeah! She came crashing out of nowhere!"

"I don't think people just crash down out of nowhere, Sonic," Tails said, laughing sarcastically. Sonic glared at him.

"No, she did! I helped her out of these rocks she was trapped in, and there was something glowing under her shirt. I wanted to check what it was, and well… she slapped me and ran away. I chased after her, but tripped and she got away."

"She was probably scared, Sonic," Tails replied sympathetically.

"I figured, and I guess me chasing her wasn't helping," Sonic muttered, turning back and looking at the direction the girl had sped off. "She looked really lost and hurt… What if Egghead did something to her, or _does _something to her?"

"So you want to look for her?" Tails asked. Sonic nodded. "And you want my help?" Sonic turned to him and grinned.

"Of course, buddy! Let's go find that girl."

-…-

She kept running, faster than she'd ever run before, even after she was sure the blue hedgehog was gone. Her heart pounded loudly in her ears, and so did her panting when she entered the dark cave. The strange glowing in her chest illuminated the darkness slightly, but not so much that she could see the water running nearby. She leaned against the cave wall, shutting her eyes and catching her breath, sinking down until she was sitting on the cold hard floor.

That strange glowing, what was it? What was it doing in her chest, and what exactly was causing it to do that? She was too afraid to even look. Even more questions flooded her brain, the main one being-

Where was she and why was she a hedgehog? She was pretty sure she wasn't a hedgehog before winding up in the strange place she was in. Now that she thought about it, she didn't have any real recollection of anything before crashing into the ground. And now she was beginning to feel the after effects of that crash. Her limbs felt sore, and the cuts and gashes stung. Her head was already pounding, and she just wanted to go where ever home was, not where hedgehogs where chasing her and metallic animals were trying to hurt her.

She wanted to go back home.

A choked sob, followed by a hiccup, escaped her lips, and tears ran down her cheeks. She pulled her knees to her chest and rested her head on her knees, hoping that stupid hedgehog wouldn't find her, her pulse still pounding in her head.

-…-

Dr. Eggman was enjoying a nice flight above Green Hill Zone on his Eggmobile when a buzz startled him, disrupting his peace. He'd been checking on his robot animals inhabiting the area when the buzz erupted. With an annoyed scowl, he turned to the blinking screen and accepted the incoming call.

"Dr. Eggman," a robot voice erupted.

"What is it?" Dr. Eggman replied, making sure his annoyance was visible with a grumpy look.

"A new hedgehog has appeared."

"And what do I care? If it isn't Sonic, then it isn't of my concern."

"But this hedgehog is quite powerful." That simple phrase, or more like one of those words, caught Eggman's full attention.

"Power? How much… power?"

"More power than a Chaos Emerald." Dr. Eggman smirked evilly, gears working up an evil plan to take out that annoying blue hedgehog.

"Tell me more."

* * *

_Nara: I hope I didn't make you guys wait too long D: I finally got around to writing this at about 3 am xD But yep, soon I'll have rewritten all the chapters and will continue c: I've got the plotline figured out so hopefully nothing stops me~ _

_Thanks for reading n.n_


	2. Chapter 2

Sonic and Tails searched in silence, all the while worry flashing through Sonic's mind with every minute that they didn't find her. His mind kept coming up with different scenarios that could have occurred to the girl, like Eggman getting ahold of her, or the girl getting lost. The worst was obviously Eggman finding her.

"What could that glowing have been?" Sonic asked, looking up at Tails. He figured starting up a conversation and keeping himself busy with that would keep his mind from roaming places he didn't want it to go.

"I don't know," Tails muttered. He slowed his tails' whirring and landed besides him. "Maybe you were mistaken and there wasn't any glowing at all."

"No way," Sonic replied, shaking his head. He rubbed his chin softly, eyes fogging with suspicion. "I felt _power _from it…. Familiar power…." Something in Sonic's head snapped. His eyes widened with realization and he turned his head quickly to face Tails. "What if-"

Behind him, he heard the sound of an engine roaring. The sound increased by the second, getting closer and closer. Without giving it a second thought, Sonic stepped to the side and turned to see a speeding blur of metallic blue coming their way. Before either of them could step aside, the blur sped past them, knocking Tails to the ground face first and the wind sending Sonic back. Sonic followed the blur with his eyes, watching it speed off and only slow down to ascend into the sky and look around.

"Was that her?" Tails asked after picking himself off the ground. He rushed over and helped Sonic up on his feet, Sonic still glaring at the figure. After it sped off again, he faced Tails.

"No, that was Metal Sonic."

"Metal Sonic? What does he want?" Tails asked, wiping away the dirt stuck in his fur.

"I think Eggman got word of the hedgehog girl," Sonic replied, grabbing his arm. "If he and Metal Sonic are interested in her, the glowing sphere definitely has power." Before Tails could ask any further questions, Sonic ran forward in the direction Metal Sonic had gone to, his fox friend getting dizzier by the second.

-..-

The black hedgehog walked out of the cave, letting the sun's rays and the light breeze comfort her. Inside the cave, she'd done a lot of thinking, trying to recollect anything she could, but all she could remember was her name: Skyalr. After having gotten nothing else except her name, she grew sick of being inside a cold and damp place and decided to go for a walk.

She took a few steps forward, looking around to see if there were any suspicious metallic animals. She saw nothing and kept walking, examing the area around her. Blue skies painted with fluffy white clouds, green grass sharing the peculiar checkered soil with tall standing palm trees, and beyond everything she could see the ocean.

_"So I'm on an island,"_ Skylar thought to herself, crossing her arms over her tattered white t-shirt. There had to be more people around, preferable people who could give her clothes and explain to her why she wasn't a human anymore. A hedgehog? And one with a glowing sphere for a heart? Nothing made any sense anymore. She liked the island, she really did, but she didn't like the evil metal animals and the strange talking ones. She wondered if she'd run into that blue hedgehog that tried to pull her shirt down. At that thought, she looked down at the glowing sphere. He wasn't the only one curious about that thing, whatever it was. Hesitantly, she pinched the neck of her shirt with a gloved hand. She prepared herself for the worst.

_"1… 2-"_

Before she could even finish counting in her head, a huge gust of wind sent her face first into the ground. Groaning, she picked herself off the ground, rubbed the top of her forehead and glared at the person who pushed her down.

A blue hedgehog. She widened her eyes, staring at the hedgehog, but noticed that he wasn't the one from before. He was made of metal, had a yellow hole in his stomach, an engine whirring, sharp fingers, and black eyes with red irises. The metal hedgehog looked at her, pointing a steel finger at her.

"You. You're coming with me," his robotic voice commanded. Skylar swallowed hard, shaking her head and taking a step back. "You're coming with me," he repeated, his voice somehow cold.

"I'm not going anywhere," she said softly. She tightened her jaw, narrowing her eyes. "I'm not going anywhere!" she shouted with a fiercer tone, curling her hands into fists.

"Hmf," the robot grunted, engine behind him starting up. "Fine. I didn't expect to have to put up a fight with you." His eyes turned red for a few seconds, then blinked back to normal and he pointed a finger at her chest. "That is the source of your power. That's all I need, I don't need your idiocies. Prepare to perish." The engine behind him roared louder, causing Skylar to gasp and bring up her arms. As he disappeared and sped towards her, she blocked her face with her arms and closed her eyes tight, preparing for the impact.

_"Damnit…"_

Her body shook, and that was it. She felt nothing more than a bit of pressure on her arms, and no pain. _"Am I dead?" _she wondered, blinking her eyes open. A light red, almost pink, barrier circled all around her, and behind that barrier was the robot hedgehog. His forehead was pressed against it, engine still whirring. It seemed as if he'd crashed into it.

_"I did this?" _Skylar asked in her head, eyes still wide with fear. She stood still and watched as the robot backed away, crossing his arms and staring at the barrier.

"I didn't detect this," he said lowly, shaking his head. "Whatever. It won't stand a chance against me anyways!" He slapped his hands together, the action causing a metal clang to ring out in the air that made Skylar flinch nervously. She clenched her jaw again, summoning up all her power to make the barrier strong. The barrier burned a fierce red as the robot powered up his attack.

"Die-"

A red shoe slapped the hedgehog in the back of the head, causing him to stop his attack in surprise. Before he could look back, a blue ball smashed into him, causing him to fly past Skylar and smash into the ground. Skylar gasped, putting down her arms and looking back that the robot. She turned back around and saw the blue hedgehog from before uncurl from his ball form, a light orange fox with two whirring tails landing next to him.

"Thanks, buddy," the blue hedgehog said, grinning at his fox friend. He looked over at Skylar and a worried frown replaced his grin. "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine," she replied softly after having found her words.

"Sonic, my loathsome copy," the robot hissed. He stood up from the ground, all the rubble falling from his smooth, metal body.

"Metal," Sonic snapped back at him.

"I'm here to take the girl. I want nothing to do with you."

"Yeah, well if you want to take her, you have to get through me," Sonic replied, standing in front of Skylar. Metal grunted, hovering above the ground.

"I don't have time for you. I'll have to report to Eggman, and see what he wants done with you three." And with that being his farewell, Metal's engine gave one last roar and he sped off.

* * *

_Nara: Thank you to Sierra Zanimalini14 for sticking with me :3 And thanks to all of you who added this to your favorites/alerts n.n _

_School starts soon ugh e.e Hopefully I can find some time to write during class since we have laptops, but I hardly used them last year u.u _

_I hope you guys liked it c: Thank you for reading and reviewing! n.n_


	3. Chapter 3

After the three properly introduced themselves to each other, Tails noticed the cuts and bruises on Skylar and began examining them. There was nothing too bad, but Tails believed it would be best to bandage her up. He told this to Sonic, who only gave a pensive look.

"Where are we going to get bandages?" he asked. Tails smiled nervously.

"I could ask Amy-"

"No."

"Flat out, no?"

"Yes. I mean, no, uh- Look, what if she follows you?" Sonic's head already began to hurt just from thinking about her hugs and her questions and her death glares.

"Who's Amy?" Skylar asked curiously. "Girlfriend?"

"No!" he exclaimed a bit angrily. "Just an annoying fangirl."

"Look," Tails cut in, "I'll tell her the bandages are for me… For a friend! And I'll tell her she needs to borrow some clothes, too." Skylar blushed, crossing her arms over her excuse of a shirt.

Sonic looked at the girl. The bandages probably weren't top priority; he had plenty of cuts and bruises he never treated. But Tails was right about her needing clothes. Her shoes were probably the only thing that didn't have rips and tears in them, while her gloves and shirt shared those qualities, tattered and dingy. He sighed, shaking his head softly.

"Just make sure she doesn't follow you back, alright?"

"I'll try," he replied, and with that, he flew off, leaving the two to watch him in silence.

"So, um… What do we do now?" Skylar questioned, nervous about the sudden silence. Sonic looked over at her with a grin.

"How about we find out what you can do?"

"Huh?"

"Think fast!"

He kicked in the direction of her face. Just as he had hoped, she brought up crossed arms in shock, the light red barrier returning and blocking his sudden attack. She flinched, and then glared at him.

"What are you doing?!"

"Testing you. Attack me."

"W-What?"

"Attack me!" Skylar stared in slight shock, the barrier blinking away.

"I… don't… want to," she mumbled lowly, taking a few short steps back. Sonic kicked up again, Skylar blocking it as usual. He kept kicking, she kept blocking, until they were both frustrated.

"Look, I don't want to fight someone who saved my life," Skylar said.

"You're going to have to fight back some time, Skylar. Do you know what's lodged in your chest?" He pointed a finger at the glowing sphere. Skylar blinked, placing a protective hand over it.

"Well… no," she mumbled the reply.

"It's an emerald. A Chaos Emerald. There are only supposed to be seven, but you've got an eighth one, a more powerful one. A normal Chaos Emerald can power up big machines that wouldn't be able to work because of the amount of power they use up. When all seven come together, they can rip through the fabrics of space."

"Wow…"

"One of those is keeping you alive, and that robot that came after you was sent from a man who has his eyes on the Emeralds. If he got ahold of you, he'd rip that thing from your chest and kill you. He wouldn't hesitate." He tightened his jaw, taking in the look of fear on her face. "That's why you have to learn how to fight back. Metal will get used to your barrier and find a way to break through it. You've got to learn what else you're capable of."

Silence blanketed over them again. Skylar inhaled deeply, trying to take in what Sonic had told her. It was only the truth, but it really did sting. It was like the thing keeping her alive was suddenly a huge weight on her chest and shoulders.

She curled her hands into fists and nodded.

"Alright. But I won't hurt you," she finally said.

"I won't either," Sonic replied, throwing the first punch.

Feeling daring, she clashed her fist against his. The impact was intensified by a sudden burst of flame that soon enveloped her fist. Both of them pulled back immediately, Sonic staring with wide eyes, and Skylar shaking her arm furiously. The flame disappeared with a sudden poof, and her fist was unharmed.

"D…Did I do that?" she asked shakily, her heart beating rapidly. After she was done being completely afraid of the sudden flames bursting from her fists, she smiled widely. "That was so cool!" Sonic laughed at the sudden change of reaction.

"Try again!" Sonic shouted, bringing up his fist. They both punch forward, and the flames enveloped her fist quicker. She pulled her fist back before she could punch Sonic's fist, and put the fire out without shaking her arm this time.

"This is really amazing," she breathed. "Maybe I can do this with my legs."

"Why would you want fire legs?" Sonic asked.

"I'll demonstrate," she offered, kicking in the direction of his face. He ducked quickly, and when he looked up, her leg was covered in flames. She brought her leg back, the flame poofing away.

"This is awesome!" She began to summon up balls of fire, punching the air and watching the fire jump up and poof away when she pleased. She even puffed up her cheeks, blew out, and a small ember flew out. She pouted, knowing she'd have to work on that.

"Alright. Use all of that to fight me," Sonic said, taking up a fighting stance. Skylar narrowed her eyes.

"Okay… I just hope I don't _burn you_," she snickered and ran forward with a fire fist up.

-…-

Tails flew back in a rush, and when he saw the two hedgehogs lying on the ground, beat up and panting, it didn't calm him down.

"Sonic!" he shouted, landing and running towards them. The two sat up, looking at him with confused looks.

"What's wrong, buddy?" Sonic asked. Tails sighed in relief, smiling.

"I just thought something happened to you guys… Anyways, I have the bandages!" he kneeled down next to Skylar and set down the roll of bandages and a set of clothes. He examined her arms, and noticed the new bruises. "What were you guys doing that you guys got bruised up?"

"Oh, uh, we were training. We tried not to hit each other, but Sonic punched me and I punched him back before he could apologize and… it went on like that," she laughed. Tails rolled his eyes, wrapping the bandages around her arms.

"Do I have to bandage you up too?" Tails asked Sonic.

"Nah, I'm good."

When Tails was done bandaging Skylar's arms, legs, and stomach, Skylar grabbed the set of clothes and changed twice in the nearby cave, only because the first time she walked out with her shirt on backwards. She was wearing a black shirt that had a v-neck and fit her a bit tight, but she liked it because it still fit her snuggly and she could move around in it quite well. She had on brand new white gloves with black cuffs and light jean shorts. Now that she thought about it, all of the clothes seemed brand new.

"Well, Amy said she'd give me a set of clothes she never liked," Tails responded when she had asked him. She frowned, lying down on her back.

"She doesn't like these? I like these clothes."

"Well, she wears mostly frilly pink things, so…"

"Ah."

Night rolled by quickly, and Skylar couldn't sleep. She simply stayed there on the soft grass, head rested behind her arms, staring at the sky. The stars were bright and beautiful, and she didn't know how she remembered, but she knew they weren't the same back home. She brought her hands up and let her finger produce a small flame, like a lighter. She wouldn't be able to do that back at home either.

"Can't sleep?" Sonic asked, lying down next to her. Skylar shook her head, snapping her fingers so that the flame would disappear.

"Not really. It's my first night here, you know."

"Yeah, I guess it's tough on you… And, I'm sorry for being tough on you, too. About the whole Emerald thing and the fighting back. I'm a really chill guy, but… sometimes you have to force things, you know?"

"I know," she replied with a half-smile. "It's okay, though. I'm glad you told me about the danger I was in, that way I could know better."

"Yeah, but you looked really scared when I told you, and now I think you think I'm a jerk."

"Nah, you're really cool, Sonic," Skylar smiled. "You don't hold back when a girl punches you." Sonic immediately placed a hand over his shoulder.

"You punch hard," he whined, punching her shoulder softly. She laughed, looking up at the stars.

"I miss them," she whispered out suddenly.

"Who?"

"I don't know… who they are. But I miss them." She suddenly felt her heart throb with a home sick feeling. She had no idea what it was like back home, whether she had it good or bad, but she suddenly missed it dearly, and she had no memory of it at the same time. It made her head hurt, and her stomach ache, and her face pinch with tears.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes… No," she sobbed out, covering her eyes with gloved hands and letting the sobs bubble her throat. She felt arms wrap around her shoulders, and that only made her feel worse somehow. She wrapped her arms around Sonic's neck and cried into his shoulder, letting her fears come out.

"I don't know where I am! I'm abandoned and alone and this place is _different_. I want to go back home! But- But I don't know what home is, where home is, what it's like, if it'll be for better or for worse! And I could kill myself easily right now! Anyone could! I could just grab this stupid Emerald everyone wants and toss it at them, and it wouldn't be so unnerving anymore! There wouldn't be anyone chasing me, there wouldn't be anyone trying to kill me, there wouldn't be anyone going out of their way to help me! I don't know what I'm doing; I don't know where I am. I don't know anything and it's confusing and scary and-"

"Calm down," Sonic cooed, rubbing her back softly. "I know it's scary but now you can defend yourself. You're a strong girl, Skylar, and I know you'd put up a great fight. You just need to trust yourself, and trust us. If you can do that, everything isn't scary anymore."

Skylar shook her head but took in the words he said. Trust herself and trust them…

She didn't know how, but she fell asleep in his arms, despite the soft sobs, her shivering body, and her mind trying to figure out what she should do.

* * *

_Nara: I went back to school today x_x What a drag, right? Ugh..._

_You know what I like about sad scenes c:? How I can mess with my own emotions at the same time xD That's writing for you :3_

_Anyways, I hope you liked it n.n Thank you for reading; please review n_n_


	4. Chapter 4

Skylar fluttered her heavy eyes open slowly, a scene of blue greeting her. Blue fur. She sighed, closing her tired lids again. She'd spilled out all of her feelings the night before, and she wasn't sure how she felt about it. She didn't feel her emotions weighing her down much, even though she had tried her best to ignore the pressure. But to know that someone knows what's on her mind made her a bit uncomfortable. And she didn't like how puffy her lower lids felt.

Although she did like the arms slung protectively over her shoulders, she still wasn't sure how much she should trust the two boys. They'd saved her from Metal, sure, but maybe they had their eyes on the emerald, too. That was somehow hard to believe, though; she shrugged it off.

When Sonic began to stir awake, Skylar pulled away from him and sat up, both of them stifling low yawns.

"Morning," Sonic mumbled, standing up and walking towards Tails. "Wake up, buddy," he said lowly, shaking his orange-fox friend. Tails groaned, pushing Sonic's gloved hand away. Sonic kept shaking his shoulder, disturbing the sleep that was quickly leaving his grasp, and he finally decided to shoot his eyes open and sigh. He sat up and yawned loudly, the way his tongue curled out reminding Skylar of some kind of cat. She laughed to herself at the thought.

"Ugh, I'm tired," Tails whined, getting to his feet. "Do you want to wash your face, Skylar?"

"Sure," she replied, following him towards the cave nearby. When the emerald lit up the dimness in the cave, she nearly squealed, but simply chuckled softly at how surprised she was. Looks like she wasn't very used to it yet. She got to small lake surrounded by a few rocks and kneeled down, dipping her hand in the water. She scooped up a bit of the water and let the cold embrace wash away the tiredness in her face. Her eyes still felt a bit puffy, and the light from her emerald wasn't helping the fact. She walked out back by herself, Tails having left for something, and saw that he was now sitting with Sonic, the two eating something round, like a fruit of some sort. At the sight of the fruit, Skylar's stomach rumbled lowly. She grimaced, speeding up her walking. She sat down in between them and looked at the fruit.

"What's this?" she asked, examining the round food. There were a few green fruits, purple ones, and yellow ones. They looked like apples, but purple apples? Strange…

"Breakfast! Go ahead and chow down," Sonic said with a smile. With furrowed brows, she reached for the green one and brought it to her lips, hoping it would taste like a granny smith apple. Cautiously, she took a small bite, and her taste buds became overwhelmed with the taste of melon. Surprised, she reached for the purple fruit, bit down, and tasted banana.

"This is strange," she muttered, grabbing the yellow fruit. She took a bite and tasted… bubblegum. "What is this…?"

"Are you going to eat all of those?" Sonic asked, pointing at the three fruits adorned with small bites. Skylar shrugged, holding the green fruit.

"Sure. I mean, they're just fruit, right?"

"Yeah, but these fill you up really quickly," Tails chimed in. Again, Skylar shrugged.

"I'm sure I'll be fine."

After having eaten the green fruit and half of the purple fruit, her stomach felt like she had swallowed a huge bowling ball in it. She groaned at the mistake she had made, burped lowly, and lied down on her back. Tails chuckled lowly.

"Told you so," he said in a sing song voice. Skylar rolled her eyes, punching a small ball of fire his way. He ducked quickly, eyes wide.

"Since when can you do that?" he asked in shock.

"Yesterday, when me and Sonic were training." Tails looked over at Sonic, who only shrugged.

"What? I don't want anyone to overpower her so easily."

"Overpower me? I mean, sure, I couldn't do much as I can now, but… At least I could run?"

"Running away isn't always an option, Skylar," Sonic replied. Tails bit his lower lip, watching the two. Now he had two friends that wouldn't hesitate to fight. Well, at least they weren't anything like Knuckles.

"Hey," Tails said suddenly. The two hedgehogs looked his way with interest. "What if we got together all of the emeralds and used them to send Skylar back home? All the Chaos Emeralds combined can rip through the fabrics of time and space, right? What if we tried that?" Sonic raised an eyebrow.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to try."

"Awesome!" Skylar shouted, getting to her feet. "Where are they?" Sonic and Tails exchanged looks.

"Scattered around the island." Skylar frowned.

"That shouldn't be too hard…"

"It's a big island, Skylar," Tails replied, and with that, Skylar's hope was crushed.

"Hey, don't worry about it!" Sonic said once he noticed Skylar's growing sad look. "The Chaos Emeralds are usually at the end of each zone of the island, so we know where to look."

"Are the zones tough to get by?" Skylar asked. Sonic shrugged.

"I usually stay here in Green Hill Zone, so we'll have to wait and see."

"Well let's go then!" Skylar shouted enthusiastically, walking forward.

"Skylar!" At the call of her name, she turned around with a clueless look on her face. "It's this way." She smiled sheepishly.

"Right…"

-…-

Skylar thought islands would be small. She thought that if she just kept walking forward for ten, maybe fifteen minutes, she'd get to the other side of the island. But no, the island they were on, South Island, was huge, seeing as it had its own 'zones.' The day was almost over when they'd come to the end of the zone.

"I think we should look here," Sonic announced, looking around.

"Finally!" Skylar announced. Sonic peered around at the green grass, checkered soil, scattered rocks and tall palm trees. At first glance, he couldn't see the emerald anywhere, so he guessed that it was probably hidden somewhere.

"Where could it be," Tails muttered, checking under a few rocks. Skylar walked around, looking behind the stones and palm trees. She came near a particularly tall palm tree, and felt a small buzz of pain shoot across her chest. It wasn't enough to have her doubling over, but it did alarm her. She looked down at the emerald keeping her alive to see it was glowing brightly, brighter than it usually did.

"What the…" she mumbled, pressing her hand against the smooth surface of the emerald. She looked up at the tall palm tree. Amongst the green leaves and brown coconuts her eyes found a small glint of red. Could that be the emerald? There was only one way to find out. With that thought, she took a few steps back, ran forward and jumped up, trying to grab hold of one of the leaves. She failed, but was able to climb onto the long trunk. She inched herself up, Sonic watching with interest, Tails watching with worry. Once she got to the top, sheltered by all the fan-like leaves was a red emerald shining brightly. Skylar stared at it in awe, cupping it in her hands gently. Not a scratch was on the emerald; it was red, bright, shiny and beautiful. The whole thing was smooth, warm to the touch, and sent jolts of energy throughout her body.

_"So this is what everyone's obsessing over," _Skylar thought to herself, peering down at her two friends. "I found it, guys!" she exclaimed with a huge smile as she thrust her hand up, holding the emerald for them to see.

They smiled with relief at the sight of the emerald they had been searching for, but the smile quickly faded when they saw a familiar figure flying her way.

"Skylar, watch out!" both of them shouted. Confused, Skylar turned around to see a metal ball swinging her way. Screaming, she closed her eyes shut and brought up her shield. The shield made it so that the metal ball didn't hit her, but she was still sent flying back. She held onto the emerald with a strong grip, making sure she wouldn't lose it, and gasped when her back hit the ground with great force. Skylar coughed, trying to ignore the pain coursing over her body as she sat up and grimaced.

"Skylar!" Sonic shouted. His eyes formed a glare as he looked back at the eggmobile that Dr. Eggman was maneuvering with an evil grin. Simply by pulling a lever, Eggman swung the wrecking ball forward. The metal ball raced towards his enemy, Sonic, and his fox friend.

He had to act quickly. Good thing speed was his strength.

Sonic grabbed Tails's arm and ran to the side, dodging the ball. Smirking, he turned, anticipating Eggman's attack. He was shocked to see Eggman inching towards Skylar, who still hadn't recovered over the blow she'd taken.

"Crap," he hissed, letting go of Tails and speeding forward. Eggman pulled the lever again, the wrecking ball pulling back before speeding towards Skylar. Skylar didn't have enough time to even shut her eyes before she was picked up off the ground by Sonic, who sped away from the wrecking ball's assault.

Sonic skidded to a stop, Skylar breathing roughly, her back still in a bit of pain. He shot daggers at Eggman, who only smiled evilly.

"What do you want with her, Eggman? I thought you hated me!" Sonic shouted, although he was sure he knew why Eggman wanted Skylar.

Skylar blinked away the blur in her eyes and looked up at the man operating the wrecking ball machine.

It was a horrible sight to see. The man wore dark glasses that covered up his eyes. He was bald, completely bald, except for his long, frizzy, furry orange moustache adorned under his long, spear-like nose. Skylar grimaced.

"What is wrong with his face," Skylar mumbled as Sonic set her down. Just as she thought the man couldn't look anymore horrifying, he stood up from his seat.

He looked like a melon with long toothpicks as legs.

"Oh lord bless his pour soul," Skylar mumbled, holding in the laugh that bubbled up her neck. Sonic gave her a warning look, but he couldn't help but smirk.

"Quiet, you annoying fur balls," Eggman shouted. "Now, before being rudely ignored, I was explaining on how that girl there has power that I want, and not to mention another Chaos Emerald as well. How _fun_," he chuckled, fiddling with his moustache. "Don't take this the wrong way, Sonic. I hate you; very much, in fact. But having power that can destroy you will always come first. Oh, and I hope you enjoy the tweaks I built for my eggmobile." With that said, Eggman pulled the lever and swung the wrecking ball forward.

The two hedgehogs ran in the opposite direction, the ball hitting the ground with a loud crash and clank. Skylar ran up to Tails, heart pounding with adrenaline from the running and the attack.

Was she actually _enjoying _this?

Well, as long as she didn't get hurt.

"We have to get rid of the wrecking ball," Skylar said, turning to Tails. "Any ideas?"

"That chain on the bottom," Tails pointed out. "If you can destroy it, he has no way of controlling the ball."

"Right," Skylar nodded, cracking her knuckles. "I don't know how I'll do it, but I'll try- Watch out!" She grabbed Tails's wrist, running away from the ball that was about to send them flying back. After dodging, she let go of Tails's wrist and turned back to Eggman and machine. He was currently focused on Sonic, who kept spin-dashing into the front of his machine, dodging his wrecking ball's attacks. She rushed forward; she had to get Eggman to stop moving the metal sphere around. When she jumped onto the ball, grabbing hold of the chain for balance, Sonic noticed her and smirked.

"Eggman!" Sonic sang out teasingly, jumping up onto Eggman's eggmobile. Eggman glared at him, about ready to reach out for the hedgehog's neck and give it a firm squeeze.

"What?" he replied through gritted teeth.

"I'm so easy to catch when I'm right in front of your nose, aren't I?" Sonic teased. "No need for a stupid ball and chain, am I right?" Eggman rolled his eyes.

"I could catch you easily."

"Prove it, Egghead." Sonic lifted his leg from Eggman's reach. He swiped at his other leg; Sonic simply jumped onto his hairless head and laughed teasingly.

As Eggman and Sonic quarreled, Skylar worked on breaking the chain. She punched at it, her fists in flames. After a few punches, the metal began to burn red. She smirked with pride, and kept punching.

"Try freezing the area, then punching! The reaction will make the metal weak!"

"Freezing?" Skylar exclaimed, turning to Tails. "I-I don't know how to do that!"

"How did you learn to use fire?"

"It just kind of happened…"

"Then make it happen!" Tails shouted. Skylar frowned, turning back to the metal. She punched at it again, making sure the metal stayed red, then took in a deep breathe.

_"Freeze it…"_ Skylar chanted in her head, closing her eyes and blowing out the breath she had inhaled. After her lungs were emptied, she inhaled and looked at the chain.

A thick layer of ice coated the metal that used to be red.

"Yes!" she cheered.

"Skylar, hurry!" Sonic shouted. He had jumped off the eggmobile, and feared that Eggman would use the wrecking ball. To his horror, the ball began to slowly swing back, preparing its attack forward.

"Annoying hedgehog!" Eggman shouted. As the metallic sphere swung back, Skylar found herself losing her balance. She was barely balancing on her heels. Clenching her teeth, she punched towards the metal chain only to miss as she slipped off the sphere. Tails flew forward and caught her in his arms.

"Sonic!" they both shouted. The blue hedgehog hadn't moved from his spot. He had a focused face on, staring at the metal covered with ice. If he jumped on at the right time, he'd have enough time to kick the frozen metal and break the chain off. If he didn't, well, he'd become a blue pancake. As the wrecking ball began to speed his way, he readied himself, clenching his fists in preparation.

"Sonic!" His eyes widened in horror at the sound of her voice. Before he could react, the pink hedgehog appeared before him, arms flung back, hands clutching her big, red hammer.

"Eggman, you jerk!" she shouted, swinging her hammer forward and hitting the ball with her hammer as if it was merely a baseball flying her way. At the impact, the chain broke, and the wrecking ball flew back, Skylar and Tails throwing themselves on the ground so it wouldn't hit their heads. The wrecking ball flew far, so far that it disappeared in a matter of seconds.

"Amy, what're you-"

"Saving you, that's what!" Amy replied angrily, breaking Sonic off. She directed her glare at Eggman, who smiled in fear of the angry pink hedgehog. He knew very well how she got when she was angry.

Amy raced forward, swinging her hammer back. She jumped up before the eggmobile, screamed in fury, and swung her hammer at the eggmobile, who shared the same fate as the wrecking ball.

Skylar watched in awe, meanwhile the two boys watched in horror. She and Tails picked themselves up off the ground, dusting off their knees and walking towards Amy and Sonic.

"That was great!" Skylar exclaimed, smiling widely at the pink hedgehog. "I'm Skylar, by the way."

"Hmf," Amy grunted, eyeing her closely. "So you're the one that needed my clothes," she grumbled, frowning. "You're cute… Don't you dare make a move on my Sonic!" Skylar stared, confused. She looked over at Sonic.

"I thought you said she wasn't your girlfriend-"

"It doesn't matter what he says. _He's mine._"

"Amy," Sonic sighed, walking over to Skylar. "Don't attack her, alright? And by the way, I'm _nobody's_." Amy went from angry bull to whining little girl.

"B-But Sonic!"

"Shut it," he hissed, shaking his head and crossing his arms. He could already feel the headache coming his way. "Skylar, where's the emerald?" Skylar's eyes widened as she realized how empty her hands felt.

"I-I dropped it," she muttered lowly, averting her eyes. Sonic opened his mouth to groan loudly when Amy's voice chirped out.

"This one?" she asked, holding out the red gem. Tails nodded, taking the emerald from her hands.

"Thanks," he replied with a small smile. She looked over at Sonic, who only looked away. She huffed. He could at least be _nice_ to her, like Tails was.

"Alright, well, thanks for helping us, but we're leaving. Bye, Amy." Sonic began to walk away, pulling Skylar with him. Amy's cheeks turned red with anger as she watched him practically take the girl's hand. Wrist. Close enough. But seeing him touch that black hedgehog was enough to have her temper rise.

"No way!" Amy shouted, stomping forward. "I'm going with you," she hissed, separating the two. Skylar side-stepped away from her. She felt as if Amy didn't like her, and frankly, she didn't like her anyways.

Sonic opened his mouth to protest, but Tails elbowed him gently and shook his head.

"There's no way we're going to get her to stay. You know that." Sonic sighed.

"Yeah," he mumbled. He looked over at Amy, who gave him a huge grin. He frowned, looking past her and over at Skylar, who was looking at the stars that were beginning to appear. He wanted to walk over to her, start up a conversation, compliment her on a job well done, but with Amy around, it would be hard to even stand next to Skylar without getting some lip from Amy. He stared at the trail ahead.

It seemed to stretch even further now.

* * *

_Nara: *bows head* I'm sorry this took so long ugh school is actually overwhelming me, and I didn't think it would. But yes, here it is~ I hope you like it n.n Please tell me what you think c: I appreciate your comments n_n_

_Thank you for reading n_n!_


	5. Chapter 5

The trip to the next zone was filled with Amy's glare, Amy's whiny voice, Amy's rage.

Amy, Amy, Amy.

It frustrated Sonic, pissed him off even. He tried to avoid her as much as he could; there really was no avoiding Amy Rose. She followed him like an annoying fly, always buzzing in his business. What made things even worse was how intimidated Amy was of Skylar. She was so intimidated, she showed it through her subtle way. She glared at Skylar whenever she came close to Sonic, driving her away from him and to walk with Tails, sending him a smile and a nervous glance towards Amy whenever he looked her way. He really wanted to talk to her, ask her what she had said that made Tails laugh so hard, but Amy wasn't letting that happen. She was acting like an overprotective pup that wouldn't stop her growling.

And she made the journey that much longer.

"This is basically where the zone starts," Sonic announced, the group stopping before a large, purple-bricked complex. It appeared to be a huge mansion with a dungeon feel to it. One could tell that the place was very old; the walls had plenty of holes and cracks, plants weeded their way up against the bricks, and past the doorway that was missing its door was complete darkness. Skylar peered inside, but didn't step inside.

"There's no way around this?" she asked. The dungeon didn't exactly give her a good vibe. She looked at a piece of rotting wood that was nailed above the doorway. In crooked letters the words 'Marble Zone' were written.

"Nope, so suck it up," Amy hissed, walking inside the dungeon. "And get over- ahh!" The floor under her suddenly lurched down at a strange angle, causing her to trip unexpectedly and land on her stomach. She screamed as she slid down the marble floor, quickly speeding up until she landed on the hard ground, dust dancing in the air and causing her to cut her screams short and start coughing. She stood up and dusted herself off. Some bats nearby felt her presence and flew away, screeching. Again, she screamed.

"Amy! Are you okay?" Tails shouted. The three walked towards the doorway, stopping right before the entrance.

"No," she growled, peering up at them. She could barely even see them through the thick web of darkness. A sudden chilly air fell over her, the fur on her arms standing up.

Skylar stepped inside, the emerald on her chest illuminating the room at least a yard in front of her. This gave Tails an idea, and from a brown sack he had made out of ripped up cloth, he pulled out the red emerald, helping illuminate the room a bit more. With their combined light, the three could see marble floor stretching out for a few feet and then dipping down in a sort of strange slide. They presumed that Amy was at the bottom of that slide.

"Marble Zone should be filled with tricks like this," Tails mused. "It's a really old place; I heard this used to be an old prison of a madman."

"Wow," Skylar breathed, peering down. "Cool, as long as we don't die!" And with that phrase, Skylar ran forward and skid down the slide, crouching as to not lose balance. Sonic followed suit, smiling at the smart idea. Tails simply jumped up and flew down where they had landed.

Amy looked over at Tails, at the emerald he was holding that gave off an energetic glow. It looked like part of the glow was coming from somewhere else, though. She looked from Tails to Sonic, and from Sonic to Skylar. Shining through her shirt was a circular white glow. She narrowed her eyes at the sight of it.

"What in the world is that?"

"Nothing," Skylar snapped, quickly averting her eyes. Startled, Amy looked over at Sonic, who only gave her a warning glare. She pouted, turning her back to them and walking forward. The three followed suit.

They kept walking for a good twenty minutes, the darkness creeping on. They stumbled into spider webs, tripped over cracks, and crouched down when bats decided to flap over their heads.

"Hey!" Skylar shouted, smiling. "I think I see an exit!" She pointed at a rectangular light just yards away. It appeared to be another doorway missing its door. Excited at the thought of finally getting out of the dungeon, she raced forward, Sonic calling out her name to stop her. But she didn't stop; she just kept running forward as the light grew brighter than the light her emerald produced. She stepped through the doorway, expecting to step over grass and see the blue sky darkening as the night came.

But instead, she stepped over a bricked floor, and almost fell into a pool of lava.

She gasped, skidding to a stop, a bubble bursting from the molten lava. The heat from the lava fell over her in a wave, slapping her in the face when the bubble burst. She hissed at the heat and stepped back a bit.

"What's wrong- whoa," Sonic mused, staring at the pool of lava that stretched out before them. Floating over the lava, somehow not having melted, were chunks of brick floor. They could use those to get across, but the heat from the lava made it difficult to even think. Tails and Amy gasped as they took a look at the obstacle set before them.

"Holy crap, how far down are we?" Skylar asked. She tried to cover her hands in ice, but it instantly melted, the water dripping onto the floor and making a hot, sizzling noise. Skylar frowned nervously.

"We'll have to use the platforms to get to the other side," Sonic said, turning to Tails. "Tails, you fly above us and carry Amy. We'll try to jump from one platform to the next, but if we need your help, fly over to us. Sounds like a plan?"

"Yep!" Tails and Skylar exclaimed. Amy wasn't so happy about the plan; it involved Skylar and Sonic together, and that didn't sound good to her. But the heat was enough to convince her, so when Tails offered her his hand, she took it without complaint, and let herself be carried to the other side of the lava pool.

"Ready?" Sonic asked, turning to Skylar. She smirked.

"Of course." Before Sonic could act, Skylar raced forward, jumped, and landed unsteadily on the platform. It rocked a bit under her feet and made the lava swoosh to one side. She gasped, her eyes wide, and Tails sent her a worried glance. She shook her head, motioning that she was fine, and hopped to the other platform just as Sonic leaped onto the one she had been standing on.

The two got to the other side in less than a minute, their faces sweaty, panting for breath. But they had made it, and they were relieved that if they climbed the stairs before them, there might not be a pool of lava waiting.

And there wasn't, but the heat remained.

"I can't stand this heat," Amy spat, rubbing away the sweat trickling on her forehead. Sonic held a straight face, wiping away some sweat every once in a while, but Tails and Skylar looked the worst. They weren't used to being under such extreme conditions, whereas Sonic and Amy had shared enough adventures under Eggman's crazy plans to be able to at least withstand this heat. Amy smirked at that, but the heat was still horrible. Skylar and Tails panted, leaning against each other and walking forward with a horrible wobble. Skylar was ready to pass out when she felt a familiar twinge of energy go through her, and her emerald glowed ever so gently.

"Wait," she breathed out, everyone stopping and looking over to her. "I think the emerald is near."

"How do you know?" Sonic asked. She pointed at the emerald on her chest, and he nodded. They looked around, but all they saw was a long hallway, a purple wall, and photo frames nailed onto the wall here and there.

"I don't see anything," Amy said, staring behind them. "We've been walking through a clear hallway for the past thirty minutes."

"Not exactly," Sonic said, turning to the photo frame nearest to them. The photo it held was faded, and showed a grinning man with a twitch in his eye. Might have been the madman. As he looked at his bald head and frizzy beard, he thought that he looked quite familiar. Sonic shrugged it off, pulling the frame off. Behind it, tucked away in a small square hole was the green Chaos Emerald glowing in response with Skylar's emerald. He tossed the frame aside, grabbing the emerald and turning to grin at them.

"Got it," he said, tossing it to Tails who secured it in his brown bag. "Let's keep going."

It wasn't five minutes later that he heard two thuds behind him while he was walking forward. He and Amy turned around to see Tails and Skylar passed out on the floor, chests heaving.

"Oh no," he groaned, kneeling down before them.

"What happened to them?" Amy asked, rushing to them. Sonic stared at them worriedly, then looked back up at Amy.

"They passed out from the heat," he said, placing his hand over their foreheads. Both were hot to the touch, a thick layer of sweat making it even worse.

"We'll have to carry them out as quickly as we can," he commanded, already pulling Skylar into his arms. Amy opened her lips to protest, but instead pulled Tails into her arms. The sooner they got out of that hot dungeon, the better. After having picked up Tails, she picked up her speed, trying to catch up to the blue hedgehog.

"He's really heavy," Amy whined, shifting the orange fox in her arms. His head lolled to the side a bit, tails limp and fluttering, and the look on his face strained. "I think he's getting worse."

"We have to speed up, then," Sonic commanded. Amy frowned, inhaling deeply then sighing.

"They'll pay for this," Amy groaned.

"They're not used to this like we are. You can say Eggman prepared us for this."

"The only good thing he's done," Amy grumbled. She paused. "Why are we doing this?"

"Hm?"

"Why are we going through this hell? What is Eggman up to this time?" Sonic looked down at Skylar, her face calm with sleep but uncomfortable with the heat. He knew she didn't like being so clueless and lost. She probably liked to be under control, and probably didn't like anyone knowing how weak she felt. But if he told Amy, would she at least back off?

"We're doing this for Skylar," he finally replied. "Eggman wants her because of that glowing sphere lodged in her chest. That sphere, it's a powerful Chaos Emerald, and he wants it badly."

"Why does she have that in her chest?"

"I don't know," Sonic said, staring forward. "I found her like that. And the thing is, she's not from here. She just woke up here, and told us she used to be human before all of this. That's why we're gathering the emeralds. We're going to get her home with them." He stopped, turning to Amy. "She's lost and scared. I know she comes off as strong, but she's really not feeling that way on the inside. So… if you could just-"

"I get it," Amy said, startling Sonic. She felt a bit bad for the way she had acted, the glares and rude tones and such, but only showed an understanding face. "You're just trying to help and, well, I'm not helping by being, uh, jealous, I guess. But I'll stop the act now."

Sonic beamed at her. "Thanks Amy. Look, I see an exit up ahead. Well, I hope that's an exit." As they walked closer, they saw the darkness of the sky and prickly green grass. The two hedgehogs sighed in pure bliss as the cold breeze cooled the warm sweat on their bodies.

"Finally!" Amy exclaimed, dropping to her knees and setting Tails down on the grass. Sonic did the same, checking Tails's bag for a water bottle. Inside the bottle was just a drop of water. He groaned, getting to his feet and walking over to a hollow on the ground he thought was a pond of nice, cool water. Instead he saw a pond of lava.

"Really?" he grumbled, turning away from it. Just as he did, he heard the familiar roar of a certain floating mobile a man drove around in.

"Can't take the heat, Sonic?" Eggman croaked, grinning cruel. He hovered a long finger over a red button, a feeling of evil excitement falling over him. The light tinted his glasses, making him look crazier than he already did. "Let me help you adapt to it."

He pressed the button, and from the bottom of the eggmobile shot out a hose that sunk into the lava and slurped up some of it. The hose retracted, pointed at Sonic, and with another push of a button, the hose shot out a ball of lava at Sonic. He quickly ran off, dodging it, the ball hitting the purple bricks instead.

"Sonic!" Amy shouted. Sonic looked back at her, giving a stern look.

"Just take care of Skylar and Tails, okay?" Before he could hear Amy's response, another ball of lava was shot his way, and he had to run off. Amy watched in horror, her arms aching to reach for her hammer. But she had to stay out of Sonic's way for now. He knew what he was doing. Right then, she had to take care of the two unconscious bodies before her, and had to find a way to get them to wake up. She heard Eggman laugh evilly and grimaced.

"Can you two wake up?" Amy asked in frustration. Whether it was pure luck or the ruckus Eggman and Sonic were creating, Skylar's eyes began to flutter open. Amy smiled in relief.

"Skylar! Wake up Tails! We have to help Sonic!"

"W-What's going on?" Skylar asked. She sat up and looked to her left, taking in the familiar eggmobile that was shooting what looked like balls of fire, maybe lava, at a blue hedgehog that could barely keep up. "How long were we out?"

"No time for that!"

"Sorry," Skylar mumbled, turning to Tails. It didn't take her much thought on how to wake Tails up; she punched his shoulder, not too hard but just hard enough to stir him awake. He had about the same reaction that Skylar did. Relieved to be out of the dungeon, clueless on how long he was asleep and what was going on, and surprised to see lava balls being thrown at Sonic.

"What do you propose we do?" Skylar asked. Tails looked over at the eggmobile, narrowing his eyes.

"The bottom of his eggmobile is always it's weakest point. And it looks like his form of attack is that fire ball hose thing. Try taking that out."

"Alright!" Amy and Skylar exclaimed, getting to their feet and looking to the eggmobile.

They glanced at each other after having witnessed the mobile's hose suck up some of the volcanic matter and throw a ball at it Sonic's way. Sonic dodged it swiftly, making sure Eggman's attention stayed on him and not Skylar or the glowing from Tails's bag.

"We have to get him away from that pool of lava so he'll eventually be unable to attack Sonic with those lava balls."

"On it," Amy said, grabbing her hammer from where it was strapped on her back. She aimed it at Eggman's ship, the hammer's head enlarging a bit right before she flung it at him. The hammer hit the back of the ship, making it lurch forward and almost hit a dead tree. Eggman got control of his ship and sent a glare the girls' way. His glare soon went back to Sonic, though, as Sonic spin-dashed into the front of the ship and sent it back a little. Tails flew up behind the two girls.

"I'll get you to that hose," he said. He held out his hand, which Skylar took, and flew her towards the eggmobile. They hovered right under the machine, the hose pointed at Sonic but still not shooting. Sonic looked over at them, giving them a slight grin, then looked back at Eggman, who grunted and called out, "Not so hot now, are ya?"

"I've got an idea," Skylar whispered. "Grab me under the arms. I need to bend this hose." Tails nodded, following her directions as she grabbed the hose, heat seeping through her gloves. She winced in slight pain, but bared with it, and bent the hose as well as she could. Whatever it was made out of, it was strong, strong enough to be able to stay together with all the lava in it, and strong enough to give Skylar a hard time. But she managed, sending all her strength to her hands and arms. Just imagining that every ounce of strength was being streamed to her arms helped, and with a metallic clank, the hose bent and was pointed straight up to the bottom of Eggman's ship. Eggman didn't notice any of this going on. He didn't notice his hose was pointed at an angle that would only hurt him, and he didn't notice an orange fox and a black hedgehog retreating, looking back with sly grins. All he saw was the smirk Sonic was giving, that smirk that managed to annoy him too easily. He clicked the button, and instead of seeing Sonic dodge a ball of lava, something hit under him. Heat began to seep into the soles of his shoes, and the metal under him felt weaker under his legs. It took him a few seconds to realize what was occurring.

"Damn you," he growled, pressing one of the many buttons on his dashboard. A small beep went off and the seat of the eggmobile shot up and off the mobile, a small propeller on the bottom of the seat elevating him up. "I'll be back," he said grumpily, steering his seat towards the direction he had appeared from. The sight was quite comical to Skylar. She didn't think she'd ever seen a small seat flying a huge, round body with long skinny legs dangling under him and equally skinny arms gripping onto the sides of the seat. She held back a laugh, and instead smiled triumphantly at her partners in crime.

"Thanks guys," Sonic said after having walked to them. "Egghead probably would have kept blasting fire balls at me until he sucked the lava pool dry."

"No problem," the three said in unison. They decided that since the sun was already setting, they'd rather journey toward Zone 3 the next morning and set up camp that night. They lied down next to a dead tree, it's branches skinny and long enough to touch the ground and surround them like a big hand with multiple bony fingers. Looking through those bony fingers, they could see the night sky, the stars up in the sky never ceasing to amaze Skylar. Skylar and Tails nodded off first, even if they had been unconscious for a while. When he knew they were asleep, he spoke.

"That was cool."

"What?"

"How you two worked together," Sonic said, smiling at Amy. "See? There's nothing bad with making friends." Amy glared.

"I can make friends fine," she snapped back, looking back at the stares. She felt herself drifting off but she smiled at herself. She was glad she didn't end up making an enemy, and instead a friend she didn't think she would like at first. But she liked her, a lot actually, but she wouldn't admit that to Sonic either.

* * *

_Nara: It's late and I don't know how to greet you all O~O_

_I hope you enjoyed this~ I worked on this on and off at school because it's getting pretty hectic and stressful. But I managed to do all the editing today, which is good c: I guess..._

_Hope you liked, please review, and thank you for stopping by n.n_


	6. Chapter 6

Skylar walked out of the building and immediately saw Robby waiting for her, arms crossed. She gave him a huge grin, ignoring the slight pain she felt on her arms, but Robby was smarter than that. He was able to see right through the fake smile, and he knew that something was wrong. But Skylar kept smiling anyways, hoping to deceive him, even though she never could.

"Hi! Wonderful weather today. Wow, today's lunch was just ridiculous, am I ri-"

"What's wrong?" Robby cut off her rambling. Skylar closed her lips tight and shook her head.

"Nothing."

"Don't you dare lie to me, Sky." A lump caught in her throat at the sound of his scolding. Robby's eyebrows shot up, and he sighed lowly. "Just tell me what happened."

Skylar closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and dropped her almost empty backpack to the floor. She shrugged off her thin black jacket, exposing pale arms with light red scrapes decorating her arms. She had a few bruises; her arms felt sore all over. Her sides felt a bit sore as well, but her arms took most of the damage. She quickly pulled her jacket back on, grabbed her backpack, and sped forward, Robby rushing after her.

"Who did this? Was it those girls?"

"Yeah. Just forget it, though. It's whatever."

"No, it isn't _whatever,_" Robby snapped back as they got to their house. He opened the door, glad that their parents weren't home, and lead Skylar upstairs. After retrieving a pack of cotton balls and a small jar of alcohol, he sat Skylar down on her plain red bed, making her take off her jacket.

"Did they do this during your gym class?"

"Yeah. They started slamming me against the brick wall like some sort of rag doll," Skylar replied, scrunching her nose in disgust of the group of girls. They could never leave her alone.

"I'm sorry," Robby mumbled. He didn't trust himself to speak. In his head, a few angry words swirled around, and he wanted to call those girls all of them. Rage clenched his jaw.

He always got like this when they hurt his little sister.

Skylar stared up at her brother. His green eyes were hiding behind floppy dirty-blonde hair. His skin was pale, not as pale as hers, and his lips were now a thin pink line. She could tell he was angry; his agitation was practically radiating around the room. His jaw was set, that vein on his neck popped out, and he didn't know what to say. Well, he did, but the words would be angry and he wouldn't know if he could stop himself from causing chaos. She'd seen him punch a hole in the wall from how angry he was at his dad. He never wanted her to see him like that, and neither did she.

"Well, you can't protect me all of the time..." Skylar trailed off, hoping to calm Robby down. But the fact only angered Robby a bit more. He wanted to protect Skylar at all costs, and seeing her like this made him think he wasn't doing a very good job of it.

"I wish I could, Sky," Robby mumbled, looking up at her odd red eyes. "I honestly do..."

_**- . . . -**_

Skylar jolted awake, something suddenly having shocked her. She looked up at the stars and branches with wide eyes, and she realized the scene was only just a dream. But it felt more than that. The memory of the dream was slowly starting to slip away from her with every blink, but she held on to it. She was sure it meant something.

"Wah... what's... what's wrong?" Sonic asked groggily. Something had pushed him awake, as if he had somehow known Skylar was awake. His tired eyes examined her; she seemed worried. "Skylar?"

"Huh? N-Nothing... It's just..." She hugged her knees to her chest, staring forward at the purple brick wall of the dungeon-mansion. She didn't know whether the dream meant something. It felt _real, _and she had been there. She had been _human. _But, what if it was all just, well, a dream, and it wasn't of importance at all. The thought of Robby and her human-self kept scratching the back of her head, and she knew she wouldn't be able to stop thinking about it. It would drive her nuts if she didn't tell Sonic. She breathed in, facing Sonic.

"I had this dream where I was human. I was walking out of school to meet a boy named Robby, and I guess I got bullied. The boy, I think he was my brother; he got really mad about it all... Do you think this dream was... a memory?" Skylar asked slowly, trying to make sense of it all as she spoke. Sonic looked at her, examining the pensive look on her face, and how her eyebrows furrowed together and how she chewed her lip softly. He smiled. She looked cute.

"Well?"

"Huh? Oh... well, did it feel like a dream?" Sonic asked, stretching out his legs.

"Not... not really."

"There you go."

"But it was so weird! Watching myself go through that. If I had been in the situation now, I would have acted differently. I would have beaten those girls to a pulp! But there, I was... quiet and silently miserable." She looked up at the sky, its dark blue color only interrupted by twinkling stars and the branches from the tree they were under. The memory might not have been the best, but it was something. Thinking about how weak she was, she realized that being there changed her. Maybe that was why she was there, in South Island. To strengthen not only body, but her character as well.

"Hey."

"Hm?" Sonic's eyes fluttered open again.

"Thanks."

"Uh, for?"

"Thanks for helping me out here. I mean, in that dream, I was a weak girl, and when I first got here, I was pretty scared and weak. I probably wouldn't have broken out of my shell if it wasn't for you."

"I just didn't want Eggman getting you," Sonic mumbled, trying to hide the heat on his face from her grateful words. She only grinned.

"Yeah, but you pushed me out of hiding behind a wall somehow. Maybe it was how straightforward you were. I don't know, but when I get back home... No one will bully me," Skylar said with confidence, lying down on her back and stretching out her arms. She grabbed one of the dry branches, pulling it gently then letting it swing back.

Sonic frowned. The thought of Skylar going back home wasn't all that pleasant anymore. He wanted her to be happy, and it seemed like she wanted to go back home, but then he wouldn't see her anymore. How could he bear with that? The selfish thought made his frown deepen. He'd rather her happy at home, than miserable at his side.

He couldn't contain the thought, and spat out, "I kind of don't want you to go home."

"It_ is_ nice here," Skylar mumbled. She was sure there was no checkered soil at home, and the stars certainly didn't shine as brightly as they did on South Island. Plus, going back home meant she was leaving behind some very important people. Sonic, Tails, and Amy. The thought of leaving them saddened her. How would she be able to leave behind Tails's friendliness, Amy's boldness, and most importantly, Sonic. "I'll miss you guys for sure."

"I'll miss you too," Sonic mumbled lowly. He knew that, from that point on, as they collected the Chaos Emeralds and got closer to Skylar's departure, he would only grow sadder.

"Sonic? Sonic the hedgehog is going to miss me?" Skylar asked mockingly, smirking. Sonic smiled back, laughing lightly. "I am so honored!"

"Shut it," Sonic laughed, slapping her on the arm.

"Don't you touch me," Skylar teased, ruffling his quills. Sonic rolled his eyes at her.

"You are something, Skylar," Sonic said, grinning. Skylar grinned back, hoping the heat on her cheeks didn't show. It was the way that he said those words that made her face flare up.

"And you're something else, Sonic."

* * *

_Nara: Wow school really took it's toll on me D: Ugh these last few weeks have been filled with me trying to pick my grades up and finish all the assignments I'd been given . Finally, I had enough time to write this short thing out~_

_Thanks for reading, please review, I hope you like it n_n_


	7. Chapter 7

Skylar and Sonic were the last to wake up since they had stayed up a couple hours silently talking and laughing, trying not to wake the others. When they finally blinked their eyes open, Amy and Tails were already eating some of that weird fruit Skylar liked. She quickly reached for the purple one, taking a bite of its soft skin.

"What's the next zone?" she asked after swallowing.

"Spring Yard Zone," Sonic replied. Amy blinked at the sound of the name. It rang a bell in her head, but was still shrouded with doubt. She turned to Sonic, furrowing her eyebrows.

"I've heard of that place before... I just don't know where..."

"I've been there before," Sonic said. "It's kind of like a really big outdoor casino with more casinos and lights."

"Like Las Vegas?" Skylar asked.

"Sure," he mumbled, finishing the last of his fruit. He stood up, stretched his arms past his head. "Shall we depart?"

"We shall," Tails replied, following Sonic. The two girls quickly followed, walking down the dirt trail decorated with burned dead trees on each side. Skylar noticed how far the trail stretched out to and pouted in boredom.

"How long will it take to get there?" she asked. Tails shrugged.

"Maybe we'll get there tonight."

"But it's barely morning," she whined, then sighed. For the hours they walked, the trail stayed the same, only subtle changes here and there every half hour or so. The trees started getting less thick, until there was only one every ten feet. Skylar spotted the mechanical animals again, keeping her distance from them. Large, metal flies twenty times the size of a regular fly. Red metal crabs with big, yellow eyes. A metal ball rolled her way. She stared at it, let it hit against her ankle, and when it popped open and stared at her with white metal eyes, she shrieked and kicked it away.

"What is _with _this place and metal animals?!" Skylar asked, side-stepping and avoiding a mechanic antler.

"Don't worry," Sonic said, looking back at her. "It means we're getting closer," he grinned. Skylar frowned and kept walking. After a few minutes of walking, Skylar stopped when she saw a glint of gold in the corner of her eye. She turned, and covered in dust was a gold ring big enough to fit three fingers in. She stared at it in awe, picking it up. She half expected it to turn into some weird animal and dart away. Maybe a rat. She had yet to see a rat. But when it didn't do anything except glint in the sun's light, she rushed back to the group, clutching the gold ring against her palm.

"Hey guys!" Skylar exclaimed, beaming. "Look what I found!" She held out her hand, the ring shining again. She felt like she had found buried treasure, but the look on her friends' faces showed it was nothing special, as if they were staring at a grimy, old penny.

"A gold ring," Sonic said, grabbing it and spinning it in his finger. "You're going to see a ton more. Trust me."

"What do they do?"

"Nothing. They're kind of like the currency around here," Tails explained. Skylar nodded. Maybe the ring of gold was worth as much as a penny, even though it looked to be worth millions of dollars. She liked the look of the rings, though, and when she caught sight of one, she didn't hesitate to pick it up. She ran past the group, picking up ring after ring, stopped searching once she had twenty in her hands. She stood atop a hill, the rest of the group a few feet behind her. She looked back at them, huffed at them to speed up, then turned forward. Over the hill, about a mile ahead, was a sparkling city with tall buildings and dark alleyways. She smiled wide at the sight. They'd get there before sun down!

"Guys, it's just up ahead!" Skylar shouted excitedly. Sonic ran forward, next to her in less than a second, and peered ahead at the zone.

"Spring Yard Zone," he announced, smiling at Skylar's anxious face. "Don't look so nervous," he laughed. "The zone won't get up and run off."

"You never know around here," she replied just as Tails and Amy caught up. Amy stared forward at the gleaming buildings. Here and there, she saw a spot of dull metal. The metal animals, Eggman's sight of the zone stung her head, as if she'd seen the place before. She was positive she'd been there before, but couldn't seem to remember the exact details. Maybe it would all come back to her once she roamed around.

"Alright," Amy sang out, stepping forward and almost tripping on another ring. Just as suspected, Skylar hesitated, but picked the gold ring up anyways.

"Do you want me to carry those?" Tails asked, pointing to his brown-clothed bag. "I'm sure they'll fit with the emeralds."

"No, it's fine," Skylar mumbled, smiling gratefully. "I like carrying these rings."

**. . . **

Spring Yard Zone was just as Sonic described it; an outdoor casino filled with casinos and lights. Skylar had never been to Vegas, but she imagined Spring Yard Zone was a close replica. The buildings stretched on for what seemed like miles, as if they could climb to the top and touch the stars. Despite the city-like image of the zone, there were hardly any people there. Replacing the city-goers were run down Badniks. Skylar watched as the Badniks climbed up the buildings only to fall back down. She caught of something strange. A round, yellow platform with a spring under it.

"What is this?" Skylar asked, stepping towards it. Just as she was about to jump on it, Sonic gasped.

"No, Skylar, don't-"

Too late. She jumped on the platform. It dipped down and sprung up, sending her flying upward. Skylar screamed as the air rushed past her skin like soft kept sky-rocketing upward, her ears suppressed with the roaring wind. All of a sudden, she felt herself dipping downwards, falling. She screamed louder, couldn't hear her own screaming, her throat aching. All she saw was the lights of the building next to her running upward as she sped down. Any second, she'd hit the ground, a hedgehog pancake. She closed her eyes tight, clenching her jaw.

Sonic ran to the building, jumped against the wall, and caught Skylar in his arms. He landed with a skid, causing Skylar to shriek a little. He bit his lip to prevent himself from laughing, and looked at her worriedly.

"You okay?"

"HELL NO," Skylar shouted, shaking. "I just flew ten thousand feet in the air!"

"You didn't fly that far-"

"It felt like it though! Agh, my heart won't stop thumping," she breathed, shutting her eyes to stop the pounding of her heart and head.

"If you wouldn't have flailed around so much, you would have landed on the spring again... Of course, then you would have been sent up again, but you wouldn't have fallen either..."

"What is up with these springs, anyways?" Skylar asked once Sonic set her on the ground. Her legs felt weak and wobbly like jelly. She couldn't stand up right, still felt a little scared and woozy from the scary flight she took. She grabbed Sonic's arm, leaning against him and breathing in slowly.

"This used to be a really huge pin ball machine," Tails said. Skylar cocked an eyebrow confusedly.

"A giant pinball machine in the middle of an island?"

"That's what I said," Amy muttered. "Well, we learned a lesson: stay away from the springs!"

"Agreed," Skylar sighed, standing upright.

"You good?" Sonic asked.

"I'm fine," she breathed. "Thanks."

"Let's keep going," Tails announced, walking forward. They all started to advance forward. A few steps and Amy gasped loudly, causing everyone to turn towards her.

"What's wrong?!' Tails asked, eyes as wide as Amy's.

"I finally figured it out!" she shouted excitedly. With an anxious look on her face, she turned around and sped away from the group.

"Amy, wait!" Sonic shouted, rushing after her. Skylar and Tails looked at each other before bolting after them.


End file.
